Many people with a sedentary lifestyle are looking for an easy way to tone their bodies and lose weight. Luckily, there is a plethora of aerobic exercise for weight loss that can be done in the comfort of your own home without the need for any equipment or prohibitively expensive gym memberships. In this article, we will go through some of these exercises and which type is best for you!
In the past, you might have been told to do cardio exercise when trying to slim down. But in recent years, studies have shown that a combination of high-intensity interval training with strength training may actually be more effective in terms of speeding up weight loss. This combination of high intensity, interval training with strength training is a perfect recipe for aerobic exercise for weight loss.
Aerobic exercise for weight loss is exactly what it sounds like. It’s designed to increase your heart rate and promote fat burning during exercise by working for large muscle groups at an elevated intensity for at least 10 minutes per session. This type of movement will burn more calories over the course of the day than resistance training, even though both types of activity will lead to weight loss.
Aerobics, when done properly, can help with fat burning in many ways such as improved heart rate without overworking muscles, improved metabolic rate, improved mood, increased bone mineral density (osteoporosis prevention), reduced risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) because blood pressure drops during aerobic activities.
What is Aerobic Exercise?
Aerobic exercise is a type of physical exercise that improves health and wellness by improving the endurance, stamina, and sometimes strength of the body through continuous aerobic movement. The dictionary defines it as a form of activity that you can do for a sustained period of time without interruption or resting.
Aerobic exercise is composed of moderate-intensity activities such as running, jogging, bicycling, swimming, brisk walking or dancing to songs with a tempo between 128 and 192 beats per minute. In order to be considered aerobic fitness, exercises must meet certain criteria established by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).
Aerobic Exercise Benefits
- Aerobic exercise improves overall health and well-being by helping to reduce stress, strengthen bones, muscles, tendons, and ligaments as well as enhance body flexibility and balance.
- Aerobic exercise has been shown to reduce stress levels in people who are suffering from it. It also reduces the amount of stress people feel by helping them to cope with their daily lives. It also releases neurotransmitters, (feel-good chemicals) like endorphin and dopamine, which make people euphoric.
- It improves the body’s cardiovascular system which strengthens the immune system, thus decreasing chances of catching a cold. This is because aerobic exercise increases blood flow to vital organs.
- It helps improve insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance, thus lowering blood sugar levels and being responsible for low-blood pressure, blood circulation, and a decrease in cardiac diseases.
- It helps to reduce body fat percentage by burning more calories than it takes to carry out the activity, thereby increasing basal metabolic rate (BMR). Also called resting metabolic rate, BMR puts real energy being used by all parts of the body regardless if they are working or not at rest time.
- It increases the heart and lung pumping capacity. It strengthens the vascular system of the body thus reducing blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
Aerobic Exercise For Weight Loss
Running
You can lose weight with running not just because it has a lot of energy expenditure, but because running requires increasing the heart rate. The more you jog, the more calories you burn. You can lose weight even if you are doing low-intensity jogs less than 3 miles per hour
Cycling
Cycling is an aerobic exercise that improves your endurance and overall cardiovascular health (meaning improved blood flow to the muscles). Cyclists often enjoy an improved sense of well-being and many find that they sleep better after two or three hours of cycling.
If you want to stay indoors while cycling, check our guide:
The Best Home Exercise Bike to Burn Fat Like Crazy
Walking
Walking is one of the best forms of exercise for weight loss because it burns calories, boosts your metabolism, and boosts your energy levels. Walking is also a very low-impact form of exercise. The impact can be gradual or sudden, but it does not produce the same kind of lumbar compression as running does.
Water Aerobics
Water aerobics is great for losing weight. However, you must do several sessions weekly to see results. By doing water aerobics, you can improve your cardiovascular health and lose weight. If you wish to lose belly fat, you should consult with your physician about water aerobics before starting any new exercise exercises to lose weight.
Jump Rope
Jumping rope is a great way to increase your cardiovascular fitness. It is especially beneficial when used in combination with strength training weights such as dumbbells. The benefit of jumping rope is that you do not need a gym membership to use a jump rope.
Elliptical Machine
Elliptical machines can help you sculpt and tone your midsection. These machines simulate the workout of running (but with minimal impact) and can help you burn calories and sculpt your entire body.
We got an entire guide just for the elliptical machine:
Best Elliptical for Home 2021 – The Ultimate Guide
Rowing Machine
Rowing machines provide a full-body workout, and because you are not using your legs that much, the impact is minimal. Rowing machines also provide complete upper body movements that can help you work your upper body in addition to your legs.
If you want to find a suitable rowing machine, be sure to check our guide:
8 Best Rowing Machine for Home – Ultimate Guide
Step Aerobics
Step aerobics is an excellent way to improve your cardiovascular fitness. Step aerobics provides all of the resistance in the upper body, so it is great when combined with weight training. It also helps you tone muscles in your entire body, including your abdomen region. It can also help promote fat loss through calorie expenditure.
Top Aerobic Exercise for Weight Loss
High-intensity interval training (HIIT) – a great way to burn a lot of calories without the impact of running.
For those unfamiliar, HIIT workouts consist of short bursts of very high-intensity exercise followed by periods of rest or low-intensity exercise. In less than 20 minutes you can burn as many calories as long duration cardio exercises like jogging or cycling.
Although these types of exercises are difficult to do under normal conditions, they also have other health benefits such as burning fat and improving muscle strength and performance.
There are many articles you can read about HIIT, peep the links below:
Best Way to Lose Weight: Carb Cycling and HIIT
Amazing Stairmaster HIIT Workout for Weight Loss – Only 5 Minutes!
7 Best HIIT Workout on the Treadmill That Will Make You Lose Fat
Conclusion
There are many ways to lose weight by doing aerobic exercises. However, one of the best combination is:
Low Intensity Cardio (Walking) + High Intensity Cardio (HIIT) + Strength Training
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